Civil & commercial mediation
Mediation is a fast and effective way to resolve disputes between parties in conflict. Civil and commercial mediation is used to negotiate a mutually agreeable settlement without the hassle, costs and stress of going to court.
Our expert mediators assist with unbiased, confidential sessions to help you communicate your point of view, put forward proposals, find solutions and reach an agreement.
Contact our mediation team to get started.
Booking a civil or commercial mediator
We offer civil and commercial mediation services throughout the UK. Our mediators, John Loram and Lawrence Harrison, have nearly 40 years mediation experience between them and are trained in a range of civil and commercial matters.
Booking your mediator is easy. Simply get in touch with us to make an enquiry about commercial or civil mediation.
Why use civil & commercial mediation?
Civil and commercial mediation is a fast, flexible and cost-effective way of solving almost any form of dispute.
The mediation route delivers quicker results than going to court and considers the interests of each party. Personal and commercial interests are not taken into account in law-based court judgements, whereas mediation allows you to take into account all relevant factors.
When mediating, you stay in control of the outcome of your dispute. You decide whether you settle and on what terms. Your mediator can help you find a way forward that is acceptable to everyone.
Issues we cover
Commercial and civil mediation is a client-centred way of resolving a wide range of disputes. These include:
- Will disputes and contentious probate disputes
- Cohabitee disputes and Trusts of Land (TOLATA) cases
- Inheritance Act claims
- Commercial contracts
- Professional negligence claims
- Boundary and right of way disputes
- Landlord and tenant disputes
- Business and customer disputes
- Copyright and IP disputes
This list is not exhaustive, although it covers some of the most common types of civil and commercial mediation disputes that we deal with. If you are seeking mediation for an issue outside these areas, please get in touch with our team or explore our other mediation services.
Enquire about mediation
Get in touch with our team to find out how mediation can help you move forward.
Contact us
What are the benefits?
- Mediation is fast. A typical commercial mediation lasts only a day; sometimes half a day is enough. It gets the relevant people - the parties themselves and, where applicable, their solicitors - in the same place at the same time, focusing on the same problem, not just on procedure.
- Mediate online. At Mediation First, we can offer a fully online mediation service, meaning you can settle your disputes remotely wherever you're based from the comfort of your own home.
- It is confidential and, compared to litigation, inexpensive.
- The parties are able to get things off their chest without sabotaging the negotiation. Each party can say what they feel, but in a managed environment.
- You control the outcome. You choose to be there and will have the opportunity to explain your point of view.
- It delivers. More than 85% of our commercial mediations settle successfully on the day.
- Settlements reached by the parties in mediation are on terms that the parties have chosen to agree and can deliver solutions that are not available from a court and which respect the parties' commercial interests, not just their legal rights.
Your next step…contact us to find out how we can help you resolve your civil or commercial dispute.
Get in touchGet started with civil and commercial mediation
Settle your disputes the cost and time effective way with civil mediation. To get started or find out more, get in touch via phone or email.
Tel: 0330 320 7600
Email:
office@mediationfirst.co.uk.
Find out more about civil and commercial mediation
Understand exactly what civil and commercial mediation involves in our FAQ below. Learn more about the process, what happens during mediation, and whether you’ll need a solicitor.
What our clients think
Civil & Commercial Mediation FAQs
Find answers to some of our most frequently asked questions relating to Civil and Commercial Mediation, here. When preparing for a commercial mediation session – you can ask your mediator any questions on the day, or ahead of time by calling or emailing our office. But here are some of the most commonly asked questions.
How does Civil and Commercial Mediation work?
Mediation is voluntary so you can only book a mediation if both participants have agreed to give it a try. As with all types of mediation, the mediator is there to facilitate negotiation. They do not take sides or tell either party what to do.
There are different ways of mediating. A face to face discussion may not work for everyone, and some people may prefer to not meet at all. In these scenarios we can use online mediation or, if in person, separate rooms, with the mediator going between the two to facilitate a discussion to help the participants find common ground and a resolution.
The mediator will not impose a solution - it is for the parties to reach agreement if they wish. Nor will the mediator give any evaluation or judgement.
The mediator aims to establish a good relationship with each side by listening to what they say and seeking to understand the dispute from their point of view. The mediator can then assist the parties to negotiate, either by further separate meetings or by bringing the parties together if appropriate.
There is no hard and fast rule about how a mediation is conducted.Mediators manage the process and will never ask you to do something that you’re not comfortable with. Experienced mediators choose the format that will best achieve your aims and maximise the likelihood of a successful outcome.
Is mediation confidential?
Participants are often worried that if they mediate and it proves unsuccessful, they will have weakened their legal position. Because of this, certain rules govern what is confidential in a mediation.
First of all, the mediation is, to use some legal jargon, without prejudice to any court proceedings. That means that any proposal that is put ‘on the table’ but not accepted during the course of the mediation cannot be referred to or used in subsequent court proceedings.
Secondly, the process is confidential, so that neither party can repeat outside the mediation anything of a confidential nature said in the mediation.
Finally, any private sessions between the mediator and a party are confidential, so that the mediator will not repeat anything of a confidential nature to any other party unless authorised to do so.
These rules create an environment which encourages the participants to share their hopes and fears with the mediator and also to put forward ideas for settlement, confident in the knowledge that if the proposal isn’t accepted, it can’t be used against them in court.
How long does commercial mediation take?
Most civil mediations are scheduled for a whole day, but sometimes more straightforward disputes can be settled in half a day. Very complex disputes with, for example, multiple parties, can last a few days.
Do I need a solicitor for a commercial mediation?
Whilst mediators can put your case within a legal framework, they don’t provide legal advice. This is the role of a solicitor. If your dispute is already in the hands of solicitors and litigation has started, then solicitors may be involved in mediation from the beginning. Or, you may want to seek a solicitor’s advice before, during or after mediation. They can help you make informed decisions considering the best and worst case scenarios. And, once a mediated settlement has been reached, a solicitor can check over the proposals and turn them into a binding watertight agreement.
Why is it important to choose an experienced mediator?
Mediation is not always easy – it will at times be challenging and uncomfortable, not least because it will involve some sort of compromise if you’re to reach a consensus. It is also common for parties to feel part way through the mediation that they are wasting their time, that the other side are not prepared to give anything at all and that they might as well give up trying to find a solution. You will inevitably come up against these feelings in any negotiation. But an experienced mediator will help the parties to persevere with the process, and it is usually possible to work through the obstacles with the mediator’s assistance to arrive at a deal.
